Lockout Feels

Life without hockey is pretty lonely. And today we actually lost games. Yep, all regular season games until October 24 are canceled. Now this all feels real, and I hate it.

I’m holding out hope that there will still be a season, but I’m unclear on how I feel about a half season. For me, the 82-game grind has always been symbolic of just how hard it is to win the Stanley Cup. I just feel like only playing half a season diminishes the value of such a prestigious trophy. Then there’s the fact that the hockey season is so unpredictable.

Take the Stars, for example. In the past couple of seasons when we’ ve been right on the edge of making the playoffs, only playing half as many games could have meant going to the postseason. They’ve been an extremely streaky team in recent seasons, occupying a plethora of spots in the standings.

And while I don’t follow every team the way I follow the Stars, I’m sure we’re not the only team who behaves this way. If the schedule is cut in half, it just doesn;t seem like an accurate telling of the best teams, y’know? Because, to me, the difference between playoff teams and non-playoff teams is the ability to endure–injuries, back-to-backs, etc.

It just sucks that I even need to bring this discussion up. Hopefully no more games will be canceled beyond October 24, but who knows what’s going to happen? I really hate the idea of a half season (I don’t want to be all-or-nothing, but right now that’s how I feel about it), but I do need NHL hockey at some point. And maybe this is a dumb reason for wanting the season, but I can’t even tell you how much I want to see Jaromir Jagr playing in a Stars jersey. If I don’t get to see that at some point, I might actually cry.

I feel like we have SUCH a good lineup this year, and this looming lockout jeopardizes it. Let’s just figure this out and play some hockey, yeah?